Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Workouts and more on the PN Lean Eating Program

Last night, I planned to do 5 total miles, with 8 by a quarter at a brisk, but not all-out pace. The workout went pretty well, and for my 8th repeat, I stretched it to a half mile. I felt strong at the end of the workout.

This morning, I lifted. My workouts right now cycle between three set/rep patterns. I have two different workouts, so there are six combinations. Today, I started the 7th round (of 9), and after my first set, which is a strength set, I did 2x20s for my main sets. Of the three set/rep patterns, I hate 2x20s. The rest is short, I have to use puny weights, and I sweat like crazy. I love 5x5 days because I get to play with big (for me) weights and I get longer rest periods. The 4x10 days are tough, but the longer rest makes them more fun than 2x20s.

Today, I started with 5x3 of DB snatches. In the last three rounds of the program, the first set goes to 5x3 (It started at 3x5 and then went to 4x4) and the goal is to add weight each time the set/rep count changes. So, today, I went from 50# to 55# and it was tough. I had one rep with my left hand that didn't seem legit, so I simply repeated that one.

After the snatches, I did squats, step-ups (these really show a difference in leg strength between my left and right side), BB bent-over rows, incline BB bench press, cable wood chops and 3-point planks. The one good thing about 2x20 day is that the workout doesn't last long - fewer sets and short rest will do that.

Tonight, because the temperature will get to at least 40F today, I'm planning an easy hour-long road run after work.

I got an interesting message in the Lean Eating program this morning. We have homework nearly every day. We have make-up days so that we can catch up if we don't have time to do something when it's scheduled, but the coaches expect that we'll do every single assignment.

At the start of the program, they said that everyone who did all of the homework would get a Precision Nutrition T-shirt. That didn't seem like a big deal, but the second half of the incentive was a big deal. Of all the people who do all the assignments, whoever has the best body transformation over 6 months also gets their money refunded - $700. Today, they posted the people who are still eligible for the T-shirt and refund and I was shocked. I think we have about 125-150 people in the program, but only 2 of us have done all of the homework so far, and I'm one of them.

The other person who has done all the homework so far started from a far different place than I started. He is a much bigger person than I am, but started with a lower reported BF% than I had. To date, he's lost 20 total pounds and I've lost only 2. So, I now have an extra $700 incentive to work hard from now until 5/24. I could use that refund to help pay for my trip to Western States. At the same time, I will also applaud the other gentleman if he continues his amazing progress and wins the refund.